The Service announced a 90-day finding on a 2009 petition by private citizens James Bailey and Natalie Bailey to list the wild plains bison, Bison bison bison, or each of four distinct population segments, as threatened.

"Based on our review," said the Service, "we find that the petition does not present substantial information indicating that listing may be warranted."

In its finding, the Service said, "Wild plains bison are distributed in parks, preserves, other public lands, and private lands throughout and external to their historical range. The current population of wild plains bison is estimated to be 20,500 animals in 62 conservation herds. Recent population trends appear stable to slightly increasing in conservation herds (as noted by the petitioners)."

In 2010, the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity sued the Service for failing to respond to the petition to list the bison and other petitions to list dozens of species as threatened or endangered under the Act.

Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center, said his organization is disappointed in the decision. "North American bison herds are a dim, dim shadow of their former glory," he said. "Today's decision that bison do not merit protection under the Endangered Species Act is a complete farce."

The Service previously turned down a petition to list the bison herd at Yellowstone National Park in the northwest corner of Wyoming as a distinct population group and on August 15, 2007 decided that listing the Yellowstone bison herd was not warranted.

In determining the bison does not warrant protection, the Fish and Wildlife Service completely ignored the fact that bison are gone from nearly the entirety of their historic range, choosing to argue that the agency has only to look at the species' current range, said Greenwald.

According to Christensen, large wolf populations are impacting livestock, game populations and pets.

Rural economies are damaged when wolves attack other animals, the resolution states.

Wolves have even begun threatening people, according to Christensen.

In Utah, wolves in a small portion of the state have been removed from list. But wolves in most of Utah are still protected by federal law.

Christensen claimed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has repeatedly failed to listen to Utah's governors, senators and congressmen who have asked for wolves throughout the entire state to be removed from the list.

According to S.C.R. 15, federal wildlife officials "only included a small portion of northern Utah in the potential delisting zone, leaving nearly the entire state of Utah as an Endangered Species classification with no hope or promise of a solution to the wolf problem for decades into the future."

State wildlife officials have also urged the federal government to remove wolves from the Endangered Species List, Christensen said.

Last week, Sen. Ross Romero, D-Salt Lake City, was the only senator who voted against the resolution.

Romero said he disagreed with some of the language used in the legislation.

Loss of habitat from human encroachment and “rampant poaching” have dwindled this magnificent creature’s habitat down to next to nothing. Further indications show that there has been additional loss of habitat due to environmental changes. I propose we make tiger hunting LEGAL. You heard me.

Polar Bear

Hit hard with global warming and loss of habitat these bears have a limited time on Earth according to scientists. While the Polar bear is not the only animal in distress in the arctic, it has become the symbol of wildlife impacted by global warming. I have no idea what can be done at this point really.

Pacific Walrus

Walrus use floating ice to rest, birth and do the things needed for birth to be a possibility. The problem is that ice is melting away at a rapid rate. There is a very real danger that these animals might not have a place for any of these activities.

Leatherback Turtle

These are some of the largest reptiles on the planet. Their nesting grounds are in danger and there is also the possibility that global warming could have an adverse affect on the future sex of turtles as well.

Magellanic Penguin

While entertaining, the message of the movie Happy Feet may not be that far off. It’s not necessarily industrial fishing that has these fellas starving to death, but again, the change in the Earth’s climate. Penguins have had to swim much MUCH further from their nesting grounds to feed.

Giant Panda

While no one knows whether or not this species will ultimately be saved (no one knows for certain on ANY species) the Panda is a symbol for hope. Despite being endangered and it’s habitat slowly being whittled down to isolated pockets for its populace, the species has held on for some three decades and has even seen some minor increases.

Bluefin Tuna

Extensive fishing of these tuna have depleted their numbers drastically in the last few years. The “WWF is encouraging restaurants, chefs, retailers, and consumers to stop serving, buying, selling, and eating endangered bluefin tuna until this amazing species shows signs of recovery.”

Mountain Gorilla

There are only 720 Mountain Gorillas in the wild. To put that in perspective, take the number of people who liked The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus and multiply that by 3 and that tells you how endangered they are. This is due to poaching, civil wars in the area and habitat loss.

Monarch Butterfly

How long have we been hearing about this one? Seems like decades. The Monarch conservation is unique as their wintering grounds in Mexico as well as their breeding grounds in the US and Can-land all have to be protected and developed for the species to survive.

Javan Rhinoceros

Less than 60 are thought to exist in the world. There are no jokes that can be made about this. A cold could kill off the entire species tomorrow. Conservation efforts have been underway since 1998, but there still is a long way to go.

The Pacific walrus warrants protection under the Endangered Species Act, but an official rulemaking to propose that protection is currently precluded by the need to address other higher priority species, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined Tuesday.

As a result, the Pacific walrus, Odobenus rosmarus divergens, will be added to the agency's list of candidates for Endangered Species Act protection and its future status will be reviewed annually. Any future proposal to add the Pacific walrus to the federal list of threatened and endangered species will be subject to public review and comment.

The Service's determination, known as a 12-month finding, found that the walrus is primarily threatened by the loss of sea ice in its arctic habitat due to climate change.

"The threats to the walrus are very real, as evidenced by this 'warranted' finding," said Geoff Haskett, the Service's director of the Alaska Region. "But its greater population numbers and ability to adapt to land-based haulouts make its immediate situation less dire than those facing other species such as the polar bear."

"If we work with native Alaskan groups, the State of Alaska and other partners to help the walrus now," said Haskett, "we may be able to lessen the long-term impacts of climate change on these animals and keep them from becoming endangered."

While candidate species do not receive protection under the Endangered Species Act, Pacific walrus in the United States are currently protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. Haskett said these protections are similar to those under the Endangered Species Act and include prohibitions on the harvest, import, export, and interstate commerce of the Pacific walrus or walrus products.

But the Center for Biological Diversity is not persuaded that these protections are sufficient to save the walrus from extinction. The nonprofit organization petitioned the Service in February 2008 to list the Pacific walrus as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act and to designate critical habitat for the animals.

"The Obama administration has acknowledged that the walrus is facing extinction due to climate change, yet is withholding the very protections that can help save it," said Shaye Wolf, climate science director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "It's like having a doctor declare that you are in critical condition, but then just leaving you unattended in the hospital's waiting room."

Wolf points out that the Service's decision goes against the recommendation of the Marine Mammal Commission, an independent federal scientific advisory body, which endorsed listing the Pacific walrus as a threatened species.

The death of a young right whale off Florida drives home the point that while disentanglement responses give the animals a better chance at survival, prevention of entanglements in fishing gear is paramount.

On February 3, NOAA scientist Barb Zoodsma joined partners from numerous state and local agencies, along with researchers from academic institutions and nonprofits organizations, to perform a necropsy – animal autopsy – on a young right whale. The animal was observed floating dead off St Augustine, FL, by an aerial survey team from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission two days earlier, and was towed to shore for examination.

Scientists were already familiar with this animal. First sighted entangled with fishing rope on Christmas Day, this two-year old female whale had been the focus of much attention since the new year. In two separate disentanglement attempts December 30, 2010 and January 15, 2011, more than 200 feet of rope had been removed from this critically entangled species. Unfortunately, as scientists would learn, these unprecedented response efforts were not enough to save its life.

Led by necropsy team leader, William McLellan of University of North Carolina Wilmington, and assisted by Dr. Michael Moore, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Alex Costidis, University of Florida, scientists examined this 31 foot, 15,000 pound whale for clues to its demise. Numerous lesions from its long term entanglement and shark bites were examined thoroughly, and tissue samples from the wounds will be shipped to labs for further study. The final results of the necropsy will depend on these analyses and will not be available for some time.

Initial observations lead researchers to conclude this whale had been entangled for months. Parts of the rope that could not be removed during the disentanglement efforts were found to be embedded in the whale’s mouth, possibly impeding it from feeding. The young female was significantly underweight. Weakened and injured by the long entanglement, she was easier prey for sharks. Bite marks on the carcass suggest that scavenging sharks may have finished off the wounded whale by severing major veins at the base of the tail.

Increased sightings of the endangered Northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf in northeastern Oregon suggest to wildlife biologists that the animals have begun a migration from Idaho that could spread to Washington by the summer.

But state wildlife biologist Mark Kirsch isn't prepared to call the wolves a pack yet, the East Oregonian reports. Kirsch says it's unclear what kind of "social formation" the wolves are in.

While single wolves have entered Oregon and left, Kirsch says this group of wolves apparently will stay.

Northern Rocky Mountain gray wolves have federal and state endangered species protection. There have been no efforts to reintroduce wolves in Oregon after people killed the animal off about 80 years ago.